MOUNTAIN BROOK - Quarterback John Colvin threw for four touchdown passes as the Mountain Brook Spartans defeated Minor 49-14 at Spartan Stadium on Thursday night. The Spartans have a lethal running game, but tonight it was the aerial show that gave Mountain Brook a big lead going into halftime.
"We jumped on them with some explosive plays, but then we had a lull," said Spartans head coach Chris Yeager. "We have to have more consistency in the middle of the game. We tried to play some younger guys in the third quarter and build depth, but we need to be more consistent."
Mountain Brook (3-0, 1-0) won the coin toss, took the ball first, and drove right down the field for a score. With 9:54 left in the first quarter, John Colvin hit Jackson Beatty on a big 42-yard touchdown pass play for the Spartans. With the score, Mountain Brook led 7-0.
On the Spartans next possession, Colvin decided to spread around the wealth as he connected with Clark Sanderson with a 53-yard touchdown pass play with 7:06 left in the first quarter. With the score, Mountain Brook led 14-0. With 2:37 left in the first quarter, the Colvin-Beatty connection struck again. This time it was a 54-yard touchdown pass play. Late in the first quarter, the Spartans led 21-0, and they were rolling. "We had some explosive plays, and there were some things we thought they were a little vulnerable to, and we took advantage of it, and they did," added Yeager. "That is what we did well. John is growing every week. That is what your quarterback needs to do. He threw those long balls on the money. Our offense is difficult to manage, and he has done great work."
With 8:18 left in the second quarter, Colvin found Carter Kelley in the end zone on a 7-yard touchdown pass play, and the Spartans took a 28-0 lead. "Our coaches had a great plan, and we came out and executed," said Spartans QB Colvin. "Our receivers did a great job getting by their safeties trying to stay in the box. Jackson and I have been throwing footballs together for years. He is one of my best friends, and we have a lot of confidence playing together. This gives us a ton of confidence for teams that try to stuff our box and keep us from running; we will get it done another way like tonight." This is the first time Colvin has thrown for four touchdown passes in his career.
Late in half, with the Spartans driving, defensive lineman Thaddious Parson intercepted a tipped pass and rumbled deep into Spartan territory. A few plays later, Kareem Keye, found Darrian Jackson on a 7-yard touchdown pass, and Minor cut the lead down to 28-7 late in the half.
In the second half, the Spartans turned to the ground game. Cole Gamble scored on a 19-yard touchdown run with 8:00 left in the third quarter. With the score, Mountain Brook led 35-7. With 6:16 left in the third quarter, Gamble ripped off a 63-yard touchdown run, and the Spartans broke the game open leading 42-7 midway through the third quarter.
With 8:57 left in the fourth quarter, Keye found Gregory Bester deep down the field for a 36-yard touchdown pass play, and the Tigers cut the Spartans lead to 42-14. With 7:28 left in the game, Will Waldrop scored on a 49-yard touchdown run, and the Spartans led big late in the game.
Mountain Brook finished the game with over 500 yards of offense. Colvin completed 8-of-13 passes for 215 yards, four touchdowns, and one interception. Gamble came on in the second half and had 168 yards on 17 carries. Waldrop had 103 yards on 13 carries, and Beatty had four receptions for 120 yards and two touchdowns.
For Minor, Kaye came into the game with other 700 passing yards, but the Spartans defense limited him for most of the night. The senior quarterback completed 18-of-29 passing for 142 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. For the season, Kaye has 12 touchdown passes and only one interception on the season.
Next, Mountain Brook will host Woodlawn, while Minor will host Jackson-Olin next week.
